Excerpt 3.
So much of what Upasni Maharaj says flies directly in the face of our commonly held beliefs and assumptions about—everything. The previous two excerpts challenge the sense of our very individuality—what we take ourselves to be. Just because we appear to be the same person from moment to moment, day to day, and others recognize us and call us by name, we never even question that we might be anything else than a single unique individual. But Upasni Maharaj says this is not the case. He says that this individuality—this identity—is an illusion. The man who spoke to Christ said his name was Legion. Upasni Maharaj was not speaking in metaphors; he is describing what actually is.
In this next excerpt he tells us that even our mind (buddhi) and its thinking and reasoning are not our own, but the thinking and reasoning of the other Jivas that reside within us. He uses the word foreigners to describe them. It is important to realize that he is speaking about those other Jivas within us—not people from another country. And he goes on to tell us how we can get out of this situation and experience our real and original state of God. But here too, what he says flies directly in the face of our commonly held beliefs and assumptions. Except for the Brahmin class, who can get out of this situation by following the practices and mode of life that has been set down for them, the only way to attain the original state of Sat-Chit-Ananda, i.e. the state of infinite knowledge, power, and bliss, is to hold tight to one who has already become free i.e. Satpurusha (a God – realized perfect one.) In other words since our minds and our thinking are not even our own, to think that we can change our situation would be like, as Gurdjieff used to say, “trying to jump over your own knees.”
At the end of the first paragraph Upasni Maharaj quotes the statement, “Parabudhhi Vinashaya.” I interpret this to mean that God destroys the evil-doers; in this sense to release our Jivas from the grip of all the foreign Jivas residing within us.
These days nobody has his own reasoning (buddhi) to work with. The reasoning has become like a blind man. A blind man has to be led by somebody else—other than one’s self. These days, people are seen to behave according to foreigner’s reasoning and Faith; this only proves that their own reasoning has been suppressed or destroyed by foreign reasoning and Faith. The consciousness—the existence of one’s own reasoning and Faith has disappeared. Almost all have become blind in this way, and entirely dependent on the foreigners. Under such circumstances, according to the statement, “Parabuddhi Vinashaya,” what else but destruction should be your fate?
To get out of this situation in everyway and to attain the original state of Sat-Chit-Ananda there are two chief methods; one is the faithful behavior and mode of life for the Brahmana class, and the other is to closely associate with God in the form of one who has attained full liberation. This is where the importance of sticking to a Satpurusha comes; and we have to stick to him because he is the one who has got out of all that is mundane, i.e. who has realized himself.
In this next excerpt he tells us that even our mind (buddhi) and its thinking and reasoning are not our own, but the thinking and reasoning of the other Jivas that reside within us. He uses the word foreigners to describe them. It is important to realize that he is speaking about those other Jivas within us—not people from another country. And he goes on to tell us how we can get out of this situation and experience our real and original state of God. But here too, what he says flies directly in the face of our commonly held beliefs and assumptions. Except for the Brahmin class, who can get out of this situation by following the practices and mode of life that has been set down for them, the only way to attain the original state of Sat-Chit-Ananda, i.e. the state of infinite knowledge, power, and bliss, is to hold tight to one who has already become free i.e. Satpurusha (a God – realized perfect one.) In other words since our minds and our thinking are not even our own, to think that we can change our situation would be like, as Gurdjieff used to say, “trying to jump over your own knees.”
At the end of the first paragraph Upasni Maharaj quotes the statement, “Parabudhhi Vinashaya.” I interpret this to mean that God destroys the evil-doers; in this sense to release our Jivas from the grip of all the foreign Jivas residing within us.
These days nobody has his own reasoning (buddhi) to work with. The reasoning has become like a blind man. A blind man has to be led by somebody else—other than one’s self. These days, people are seen to behave according to foreigner’s reasoning and Faith; this only proves that their own reasoning has been suppressed or destroyed by foreign reasoning and Faith. The consciousness—the existence of one’s own reasoning and Faith has disappeared. Almost all have become blind in this way, and entirely dependent on the foreigners. Under such circumstances, according to the statement, “Parabuddhi Vinashaya,” what else but destruction should be your fate?
To get out of this situation in everyway and to attain the original state of Sat-Chit-Ananda there are two chief methods; one is the faithful behavior and mode of life for the Brahmana class, and the other is to closely associate with God in the form of one who has attained full liberation. This is where the importance of sticking to a Satpurusha comes; and we have to stick to him because he is the one who has got out of all that is mundane, i.e. who has realized himself.
posted by Michael Kovitz at 8:31 AM
3 Comments:
I think many people get lost in this train of thinking. I've tried describing these things to my mother, and she has immense difficulty following (or maybe) believing these types of things. I once had a psychiatrist who couldn't believe that a person could not achieve this liberation without help from anyone else. I find it interesting how difficult it is for people to be open-minded or even capable of following a discussion about these things. In any case glad you are posting often here I (or should I say we) love reading your posts.
Andy, thanks for your comment. What occurs to me is if we really begin to "see" -- to "feel" what Upasni Maharaj is saying, then it begins to break down our own sense of separateness from everyone and everything. In other words, your mom and dad and psychiatrists are in you and you are in them. I see that sometimes I act exactly in the way my mother did. Common thinking would say something like, "You've picked up her tendencies. You've learned it from her." But perhaps its even more profound than that? Maybe we are not as solid as we think? Maybe our own Jivas gets into each others Jivas i.e. we are not the only ones with mirrors -- we ourselves are reflected in others mirrors as well. As Upasni said once, "These bodies are not solid forms; Jivas move freely through them." I would add, like cattle grazing in different fields. As I said before, "seeing this, feeling this," does it not give new meaning to the idea of relationship and perhaps, just perhaps, opens the door to real compassion?
Yes I would have to agree that, indeed, it does open the door to real compassion. The struggle (for me anyhow) is holding on to this feeling and remembering it in a consistent manner throughout my day and in my personal interactions with people. It is all too easy to forget and pull back into the comfort(?) of the I.
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